Jackie’s Sandals Bahamas Mission. 1st Sept 2013 – 4th Sept 2013

Sandals Bahamas 1st Sept 2013 – 4th Sept 2013:
Next Mission! Bahamas:

Before I write any more I must first try and suggest that you should fly British Airways direct when travelling to this destination. Our group, unfortunately did not have this luxury, and spent hours in Miami Airport. Despite this we still had a cheerful and upbeat group who arrived into Nassau late afternoon on Sunday. When we finally arrived into Sandals Royal Bahamian our first activity consisted of sampling a course in the Japanese Teppanyaki Restaurant, where we were treated to an entertaining singing chef (Wannabe Elton John). Apparently Daniel was leaving that night on the plane.  We did not discover who Daniel was, but he left anyway:  We had a great night, terrific service and good food. Being a dedicated Agent, I visited all bar areas to test facilities and products.  It was lovely walking around the resort with the little stage areas which had live bands playing; Karaoke was also attempted in one of The Royal Bahamians Bars; this  was short lived and not very successful, by this time the Sun had risen so we all decided to attempt to find our rooms and get a little shut eye, as we had a full Itinerary planned for the next day.

Day Two:  Started with breakfast by the pool which was, catered by the lovely staff. One noticeable feature about Royal Bahamian is that it has a beach on an Offshore Island. Hence the picture of Ricardo, he puts you on a little motor boat and takes you across to the little Island which is quiet and has a lovely beach and a great Restaurant called The Grill. Here you can relax for the whole day if you want to, and then simply hop on a boat back later during the day. Poor Ricardo travels back and forth every few hours. After spending a few hours swimming and exploring the little Island we travelled back to the main Island and visited the main pool which has a swim up bar with such a great collection of Staff all friendly, and very helpful. 

After being caught enjoying ourselves far too much, a site tour and training seminar was arranged. The Red Lane Spa was superb, despite being relatively small in comparison to the rest of the site. After viewing different parts of the resort I gathered that it was quite large and commercial: But I loved the Balmoral Tower where my room was: I had a partial view of the Sea. But you do have to request Balconies and views: Windsor section was being refurbished and to be quite honest it did need it. It does pay to try to get a room with a view, as the resort has rooms that face inward with gardens and they are quite shaded.  All rooms are very spacious and very luxurious, light and airy. Also at the Resort you can play Tennis , take part in Water Sports  Scuba Dive   make use of the six Swimming Pools, ten Restaurants and most importantly eight bars! If you like a resort that is not isolated where  you can get to take excursions to commercial areas and you love a resort that has no children then this is the resort for you.

Day Three Onwards to Exuma:  Boarded a small aircraft to Exuma which provided a beautiful view from above. When we landed into Exuma we had a free for all getting our luggage off the tarmac which sounds a nightmare but actually  was great fun, thanks to the very friendly Sandals Staff that are there ready and waiting at the Airport. While waiting at the Airport for Sandals to organise our luggage, we spoke to the locals, who proved to be deeply proud of their little Islands and they can tell you all about its history and our British history as well.  To say I enjoyed this little Island is an understatement. From the wonderful ambience to the powder white sands of its beaches it is the Jewel in the Crown of Sandals resorts. The layout of the grounds with the top class Greg Norman Golf Course , Cafe Paris  Red Lane Spa  Water Sports and Tennis Courts and its quiet pool areas. The rooms are all generous in size and luxurious. The beach is truly magnificent and a sight to behold, if you can afford to upgrade to beach front, at this resort it would be worth it.  After our group had the site inspection we had the best day on the Golf Course, we put a new meaning to a drive… Up and down the bunkers   and the green in our buggies. After which we changed and headed for the Beach Bar, with loungers in the pool, Swim up pools and many other activities where we watched Pool Volleyball and Water aerobics, all taken on in the name of Classic Travel. 

Onwards to the Excursions on Day four after Several visits to Cafe de Paris,(my room was opposite) and testing the facilities of resort, we attempted a Goldeneye excursion, which is such a good day out, in the James Bond Speedboat. We ventured out to some of the most spectacular Islands the Bahamas has to offer, From Geysers to some spectacular viewpoints, we did it all. Ending up with the best excursion of all. Swimming with pigs:  Yes real hairy oink oink pigs! And yes they really do swim, be careful if you try this as they are quite partial to nibbling a T-shirt or two.

Summing my trip up both resorts, have their plus points, But I would recommend you  go that extra mile to experience Emerald Cay it was a great little Island.

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